


Bless 'Em All

by haventacluewhatimdoing



Category: Ghosts (TV 2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ancient History, Autism, Autism Spectrum, Autistic Captain (Ghosts TV 2019), Bittersweet, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Christmas, Christmas Presents, Christmas Tree, Classics, Cos us brits love our tea, Cos we love asexual relationships, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fireworks, First Kiss, Fluff, Forehead Kisses, Found Family, Friends to Lovers, Holding Hands, How Do I Tag, Hugs, I failed at keeping it light, I hope, I'm Sorry, I'm acc gonna try and make it a proper slow burn this time, I'm gonna try and keep this one light, I'm tired so i'm being pedantic with myself in the tags, It's disconcerting, It's gonna get nerdy, Latin, Light-Hearted, M/M, Military History, Minor Character Death, Mutual Pining, New Year's Eve, New Years, No Sex, No Smut, Oh yeah we got there eventually, Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Queerplatonic Relationships, Queerplatonic relationships are good and healthy, Rain, Requited Love, Self-Indulgent, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers, Tea, Textfic, That's not a tag??, The Captain (Ghosts TV 2019) Backstory, The Captain is Gay (Ghosts TV 2019), These tags are a proper mess, They're alive in this fic but that's beside the point, Thomas needs to stop fancying Alison, Trees, War, Why do my tags always end up being so long, You can see the progression of this story in these tags, You're Welcome, all that jazz, as they should - Freeform, at the end, eventually, in the past, no beta we die like the ghosts, so glad that's a tag, sorry - Freeform, that should be a proper tag, the ghosts ship it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:07:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27609454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haventacluewhatimdoing/pseuds/haventacluewhatimdoing
Summary: The Captain is a history teacher at a university with a pretty mundane life. That is, until Professor Havers arrives...
Relationships: Alison & The Captain (Ghosts TV 2019), Alison/Mike (Ghosts TV 2019), The Captain (Ghosts TV 2019)/Original Male Character(s), The Captain/Lieutenant Havers (Ghosts TV 2019), The Captain/Pat (Ghosts TV 2019), in the past tho - Relationship
Comments: 52
Kudos: 80





	1. Simply chemicals wrapped in a gaudy packaging

**Author's Note:**

> New fic time!
> 
> I've had this rattling around in my head for a while now, and I finally go round to writing the first chapter.
> 
> Title is a George Formby song, it's great :)
> 
> DISCLAIMER: I am not autistic. Two of my closest friends are, and I am checking all my writing against numerous websites to make sure I am portraying the Captain as best as I can. However, since I am not autistic myself, I cannot be certain as I do not understand what it is like personally, and I do not claim to. So if I do cause any offence or anything is off that you pick up, please please please let me know in the comments! The last thing I want to do is offend anyone.
> 
> As always, written on my phone, so apologies for any errors!
> 
> Onto the story! I hope you enjoy :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, no Havers in this chapter :(

"Dismissed." The Captain waved his hand at the students, who left his class abruptly. He sighed heavily and sank down into his chair. It had been a long day. Thursdays always were, back to back lectures weren't fun.

He opened the middle desk drawer and picked up his phone, keys and earphones (he'd caved into the portable music idea two years ago, as it helped to drown out background noise). He reached into his jacket pocket for his mp3 player and attached his headphones, pressing play while collecting the rest of his belongings.

He walked down the corridors, nodding at Alison as she walked past, before exiting the building through the double doors into the cold November air. He let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding. The crisp autumn-come-winter air helped to ease the tension in his body by the tiniest amount, and he set off down the road. He lived about a half an hour walk from the university, and unless he had papers to carry, he took the opportunity to stretch his legs. Being stuck in a classroom all day was not the best for one's health.

He skipped through the songs on his mp3 player until he reached his favourite album - Wartime Classics. The end of his mouth turned up slightly as George Formby's voice played into his ears.

He watched the world around him as he walked - buses going past, people wandering down the pavement glued to their phones, the odd elderly couple nattering to one another. People watching was a hobby of the Captain's. Sometimes he would just sit on a bench for an hour, watching events play out in front of him. He liked to imagine what their lives were like - what had made someone smile while looking at their phone, where people were headed, chuckling at the odd person running for a bus, trying to guess if they would make it or not.

Right now, however, the Captain just wanted to get home. He shoved through a crowd of teenagers blocking the pavement, ignoring the clamour coming from them, and marched towards his apartment. He couldn't cope with strangers at this moment in time.

He reached his front door, having narrowly avoided Michael on the stairs, and turned his key in the lock, pushing it open. He dumped his bag on the floor, and hung his jacket up before making his way to the sofa and sitting down with a thud.

His phone buzzed, and he clicked on the notification.

_Patrick 5.32pm_

_Home in 10 x_

The Captain smiled to himself. Pat knew that Thursdays stressed him out, so always made an effort to finish work as promptly as he could. He'd often pick up a microwave meal from the Tesco express next to his work, and they both knew that the Captain secretly enjoyed them despite his constant moans that it 'wasn't proper food, simply chemicals wrapped in a gaudy packaging'.

He flicked the TV on, scanning the guide for anything remotely interesting. He settled on Pointless - both himself and Pat enjoyed quiz shows. He watched Alexander Armstrong read out the clues for the 19th century novels as he heard the key in the door. He looked up as Pat entered, bearing a mac n cheese ready meal.

"I thought I told you not to buy that rubbish," the Captain teased as Pat dropped a kiss on his forehead.  
"Shut up, I made an effort, leave me alone." Pat replied, smiling. "You want anything from the kettle?"  
"Coffee would be lovely, ta." Pat rolled his eyes before making his way to the kitchen.

Many people often asked the Captain about his relationship with Pat.  
_'Are you two dating?'  
'You look like more than just friends.'_  
He always responded with the same answer: why does it matter? The Captain didn't understand why everyone wanted to know the internounts of his love life. He and Pat were happy with their queer-platonic relationship, and they both understood that it was not exclusive. If others couldn't wrap their heads round it, then that was their problem.

Pat set the Captain's coffee on the table in front of him, before curling up on the sofa with his own cup of hot chocolate.  
"Tea's in the oven." Pat smiled. The Captain thanked him before yelling 'Great Expectations' at the TV.

Once their dinner was cooked, they sat down at the kitchen table, flipping the TV over to BBC 2 to watch House Of Games. The Captain ate his way through his mac n cheese quickly - he'd only had a sandwich for lunch - before quickly checking his emails on his phone.  
"That thing really is ancient, you know," Pat shook his head fondly. The Captain looked at his phone. Okay, yes, he bought it 10 years ago, but it still did all he needed it to. No need to waste money on a new one, he'd only have to relearn a whole phone system.

He groaned as he saw an email from the head of the history and politics department. He immensely disliked the man, an ex Tory MP, and would much rather get shut of him. Sadly his father owned the university building, so it was unlikely to happen.  
"What's up?" Pat asked, raising an eyebrow.  
"Just Fawcett." The Captain replied, opening the email. He scanned through it before groaning again. He saw Pat's face, and said,  
"There's a new teacher starting. Ancient history from the looks of it. I've got to 'show him around' tomorrow, he starts officially on Monday."

Great. Just what the Captain needed. A bumbling fool, completely incapable, to follow him around for 8 hours.  
"Shut up and dance with me." The Captain looked up, confused.  
"I'm sorry?"  
"The answer." Pat pointed to the telly. The Captain nodded in understanding, before looking back down at the email.

God, how he hated Thursdays.

"You look stressed, like more than normal stressed." Pat remarked, a look of worry on his face. The Captain waved him off flippantly, but Pat knew him better than that.  
"Come on, Cap, what's wrong?" He asked softly.  
"It's just... it's all too much today." The Captain bit his lip, embarrassed. He shook his head.  
"Hey, hey, hey, it's okay. Look at me?" The Captain raised his head. Pat looked at him in the eyes.  
"It's okay, Cap. Let it all out. It's just me." The Captain nodded, rocking back and forth slightly, tapping a rhythm onto the table.

He felt ashamed at himself. He felt ashamed that he couldn't cope like normal people could. He was diagnosed with autism about four years ago, but his childhood had left scars that he doubted would ever heal. Other children in his class thought he was being rude when he didn't share, or didn't want to participate in group activities. He'd always found it hard to have positive relationships with people - even now, in his mid 40s, he only had two people he considered to be friends.

He started murmuring the lyrics to 'I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General' to himself. Pat turned the TV off, and stood by his side, assuring the Captain that he was there and he was safe.

Later that night, the Captain and Pat were curled up together on their sofa, watching 1917. Pat had asked to watch Nativity, to which the Captain protested for numerous reasons.  
("One, it's not even December yet. Two, it's a children's film. Three, we've seen it before!"  
"Kids movies are the best movies!")

The Captain pressed a kiss to Pat's hair.  
"How's the search going?" He asked.  
"This again?" Pat asked, exasperated.  
"Yes. Pat, you're always saying you want to find a partner. So, is there anyone you've got an eye on?"  
" _No,_ Cap. If I'm completely honest, I still haven't processed the Carol business." The Captain hummed in reply. It had been a big shock to Pat, to discover that his long term girlfriend had cheated on him with his best mate. He had a feeling it was something to do with him.  
"We can always call this off, Pat." He reminded him. Pat turned around so he was facing the Captain.  
"Teddy, I would never do that. If somebody does not accept this aspect of my life, then they're not the one for me." He leant up to press a kiss to the Captain's forehead.

They watched the rest of the film in a comfortable silence before turning in for the night. The Captain's mind was running a mile a minute, thinking about his lessons tomorrow as well as dealing with the new professor. Pat rolled over to wrap his arms around the Captain's waist, helping him to relax, and he soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> British quiz shows 👌
> 
> I saw 1917 in the cinema at the beginning of this year (pre-covid - feels a longgggg time ago now), and if you are okay with graphic images of injuries I highly recommend it!


	2. I am a respectable scout leader, not a puppy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Captain deals with the new teacher, and has a revelation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really should be writing my other fic...
> 
> But oh well! Here we are.
> 
> I sneaked a quote from Merlin into his chapter, kudos to you if you spot it :)
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

The Captain sighed as he got out of bed. He always woke up at 6am, without fail, but that didn't mean that he wanted to be. He wandered into the kitchen, pouring himself a bowl of cornflakes and a glass of apple juice. Pat emerged about 5 minutes later, bleary eyed and slumping. The Captain smiled softly. He always looked cute in the mornings. He voiced his thoughts, to which Pat replied,  
"I am not cute!" He waved his spoon at the Captain. "I am a respectable scout leader, not a puppy!"  
"Are you threatening me with a spoon?" The Captain raised an eyebrow, nodding towards the utensil in Pat's hand. The latter man looked down at his hand, before quickly placing the spoon down in his bowl of cereal.  
"Shut up," he muttered, filling the kettle with water.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

The Captain sat down at his desk, flipping through his notes for the day. He had a class period 2 and 4, plus a staff meeting in 20 minutes. He thanked the universe it was Friday - he didn't think he could take much more of this week.

A knock at his door made him look up. A tall man, late 30s from the look of him, was at the door.  
"What." The Captain snapped.  
"I'm terribly sorry, but where is the staff meeting being held?" The man had a sheepish look on his face. The Captain sighed, he really didn't want to deal with this on a Friday morning.  
"Follow me," he got up from his desk, threw his jacket on and marched past the man towards the meeting room. He heard quick footsteps behind him - the Captain had always had a large stride.

They reached the door, and the Captain opened it for the other man.  
"Thank you," he smiled, and the Captain simply shrugged, a light blush dusting his face. He sat down at the back of the meeting room in his usual place - the other staff knew better than to take his seat - and pulled out his phone. There was two texts sitting on his notifications bar. He opened the first one, which was from Pat.

_Patrick 7.34am_

_It's gonna be fine. Just breathe x_

The Captain smiled softly. Pat could always tell when he needed a motivational text to cheer him up. He opened the second message.

_Alison 7.48am_

__

__

_Running late. Lady B is gonna kill me!_

The Captain shook his head. Alison was always caught up in one shenanigan or another, and often kept him updated with the goings on. It was better than reality TV. He typed a message back.

_To: Alison 7.52am_

_I cannot believe you overslept again! Keep me posted._

_Alison 7.53am_

_Will do. I'm so dead. Inform Mike if I don't come home._

The Captain snorted. He didn't reply, however, as at that moment Julian Fawcett walked in, strutting like he owned the place. Annoyingly, he practically did.  
"Alright, so we have a new professor joining us. Mr Havers, Ancient History and Classics. Captain, you're to keep an eye on him today, alright? And only an eye." Julian winked at him, to which the Captain sighed. The politician didn't seem to say anything without throwing a dirty joke in the mix.

The rest of the meeting went by in a blur, general notices, help clubs and the like. The Captain kept an ear out for anything of importance, but on the whole tuned it out. Most information was for the generic history and politics teachers rather than him specifically - as a military history expert, he didn't have to do much more than give his lectures.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"Right, just... sit there, and don't disrupt me." The Captain pointed to a small desk in the corner of his room, settling at his own desk. He pulled out his notes for his first lecture - the roles of exempt soldiers in WW2. It was a subject he had always found interesting, his grandfather having been the captain at a military base in England.

A light cough made him look up from his work. Havers was looking at him from where he was sitting.  
"Yes?" The Captain snapped.  
"I apologise, it is rather out of line, but I was wondering what aspect it is you teach? Not to judge a book by its cover, but you don't seem to be the history type." Havers replied. The Captain raised an eyebrow. Bold. He liked that. Most people avoided him, he tended to be cold with strangers.

"Military history," he replied. Havers seemed to consider his answer, before nodding.  
"I can see that. I was a Classics teacher, now do Ancient Rome with a bit of Greece thrown in."  
"Fascinating," the Captain muttered, returning to his work.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

Despite his best efforts, the new professor didn't leave the Captain alone. He was very respectful, but didn't seem to want to sit in silence. Throughout the course of the day, the Captain had discovered that Havers had a half-sister, he had studied Latin at university and was 39. The Captain himself had divulged very little, keeping his answers to the other man's questions short and concise.

As it neared 5pm, the Captain sighed and rubbed his forehead. The second years had just done a practice exam, and he had been given the delightful job of marking them. He prided himself on returning papers at lightning speed, but he never worked on Sundays (Pat didn't let him), and Alison were forcing them all to go bowling on Saturday afternoon, which would inevitably lead to her and Mike getting drunk in the pub in the evening. The end result would be him driving them all home (Pat was sometimes a help, it depended on whether he had got drunk or not), and Alison whinging about her hangover the next morning.

Havers seemed to sense his stress, as he stood up and slowly walked over to the Captain's desk.  
"Is there anything I can help you with, sir?" The Captain raised an eyebrow at the formality. It had been a long time since anyone had addressed him as such (his students didn't count, and most of them called him Captain anyway), and it sent a small shiver down his spine.  
"No, thank you. Simply have to mark these papers by Monday afternoon and am wondering where to find the time." The Captain replied, trying and failing to keep an air of nonchalance in his voice.  
"I could help."

The Captain looked up to meet Havers' eyes. He inhaled sharply for a moment, before catching himself and shaking his head.  
"It's quite alright."  
"Nonsense, sir. It is simply using a mark scheme, yes? No essays to mark. I know my basics, so I am able to help." Havers stood his ground, a challenging look in his eye. The Captain cleared his throat and looked away, the other man's gaze suddenly becoming too strong. He felt slightly flushed, and unfortunately couldn't blame it on the weather.

"Well, that would be incredibly kind of you. I am free first lesson on Monday, as are you I believe." The Captain conceded. He could use the help.  
"That I am, sir. I'll meet you in here." Havers looked up at the clock. "It's 1700 hours, I will take my leave. See you on Monday, sir." Havers nodded at him, smiling warmly before leaving the room. The Captain sat, rooted to the spot. He didn't know what to make of the newcomer. He was certainly... interesting. And didn't seem to hate the Captain, which was always a good thing.

As he packed up his things, he felt a light flutter in his stomach. His eyes widened. He knew that feeling.

"Oh, blast."


	3. It's a bag of crisps, Alison.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Captain teaches a far from normal class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp it's been a while!
> 
> I'm playing fast and loose with how uni works, it's artistic license, ssh...

The weekend passed the Captain in a blur - he remembers having to deal with an extremely drunk Alison having a stand-off with her fridge and Pat sleeping through half of Sunday, giving him time to visit the local high street to buy Christmas presents. It wasn't December yet, but the Captain liked to be organised. On numerous occasions his gift from Alison had been the first thing she could find at a petrol station.  
("It's a temporary present, I'll get you a better one, I promise!"  
"It's a bag of crisps, Alison. And Mike has eaten half of them.")

Sooner than he would have liked, Monday morning rolled around. He pulled his coat on as Pat stumbled out of the bedroom. The Captain shook his head fondly - Pat was wearing a pair of pyjamas with 'dachshund through the snow' written above a cartoon of a sausage dog wearing a Santa hat. He looked ridiculous and adorable at the same time.

"Good luck with your first years," Pat smiled, flicking the kettle on as the Captain turned to leave. He sighed deeply, before nodding and shutting the door behind him.

He pulled his flat cap firmer on his head as he stepped outside. He wasn't looking forward to his first lesson of the day. The first years this year were particularly troublesome: the Captain can't recall a class worse than them. He stuffed his hands into his pockets, looking at the Christmas displays in shop windows as he walked past. Unacceptable, putting all the holiday tack up before December had even begun. Christmas seemed to start earlier every year.

As he entered his classroom, he did a double take. Havers was already there, sitting on a chair at the Captain's desk, going through exam papers. He seemed immersed in marking, so the Captain quietly put his bag down on the floor and removed his coat. He didn't know why he was taking care not to disturb the man; after all, he usually didn't worry about other people, they never seemed to worry about him. But there was something on Havers' face, the way he was chewing the end of his red pen in thought, that made the Captain want to look after him.

Havers sighed and put the pen down on the table, scrubbing his hand over his face. As he looked up from the paper, he noticed the Captain standing with his arms folded, watching. He stood up immediately.  
"I'm awfully sorry sir, it's just, I overestimated the length of my journey, so I got here early, so I just thought it would be a good idea to start on the papers, I'm sorry." He babbled. The Captain merely raised an eyebrow, amused.

"That's perfectly alright, Havers. You're just like a Lieutenant." The Captain chuckled. Havers looked puzzled for a moment before nodding.  
"I take it this means I can carry on?"  
"Of course, of course. I have a lecture first thing, and you are welcome to stay or go as you please." The Captain nodded at him, before adjusting the pens on his desk so they were exactly parallel to the edge of the desk. It was silly, but small things like that made the biggest difference to his mood.

"I'll stay, if it's all the same to you. I'll continue marking these papers, and besides, I'd like to see what I'm competing with." Havers smirked, causing the Captain to cough and look away, hoping the pink tinge on his cheeks could be blamed on the cold weather outside.

"Of course."

The Captain settled down at his desk, Havers moving to sit at a single table in the corner of the room. Just as the Captain picked up his pen to start marking an exam a loud clamour was heard from the corridor outside, followed by a young man flying through the door and landing flat on the floor. Right in front of the Captain.

"You, boy!" The Captain yelled at him. "What the bally hell do you think you're playing at?" The teenager hastily got up, standing in front of the Captain.  
"My apologies, sir, but some people simply don't appreciate my talent." The Captain scoffed.  
"Is your name Thomas Thorne by any chance?"  
"Yes, sir, the one and only."  
"Well, frankly I don't give a damn if there's one of you or thousands. You are not in my class, your lecture with Ms Cooper started ten minutes ago, and I don't appreciate people barreling into my classroom uninvited!" Thomas looked sheepish as the door opened and more students entered.

"You deserve that!" One pupil with wild hair shouted at him.  
"Robin, please! I don't care about your petty arguments, you have a lesson! Now, get out of my sight, Thorne." The Captain pointed towards the door, which Thomas headed towards, almost walking straight into a young woman entering.

Havers watched on in amusement from his seat in the corner of the room. The Captain turned round to look at him, pulling a face. Havers simply shook his head back at him, mouthing 'good luck'. The simple phrase made the Captain feel warm inside, and he cleared his throat before turning back to his class.

"Right, you are all here to learn about Roman military history. Whether this is part of your coursework or simply your extra curricular lesson, you will pay attention, yes?" He got a mixed response, from an enthusiastic nod from the girl sitting at the front to a mere grunt from Robin.

The Captain turned to his whiteboard, picking up a pen. It was going to be a long lesson.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"It all sounds so exciting!" The energetic girl, Kitty, the Captain recalled, clapped her hands together.  
"It was, if you survived. However many didn't." The Captain paused for a moment, lost in thought, before returning to the lesson.  
"Now, for your next lesson, I would like you all to draw up your own conclusion on conscription in the Roman army. And yes, Mary, that is compulsory." The girl with smudged eyeliner thumped her hand down on the desk, miserable.

"Dismissed." The Captain waved his hand half heartedly at them, sitting down in his chair. He put his head in his hands, letting out a long breath. A chuckle from behind him made him look up.

"They're a handful, aren't they?" He asked, moving his chair to sit opposite the Captain.  
"You're telling me." The Captain shook his head, almost in disbelief that a group of 18 year olds could be so rowdy. He had never been that bad in his life, at any point.  
"I finished the papers, by the way." Havers handed the stack of exams to the Captain, who looked at them, mouth hanging open.  
"How... how did you manage to do that?" He asked, flabbergasted.  
"Well..." Havers scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "I may have taken them home over the weekend."  
"You didn't need to do that." The Captain told him.  
"I wanted to." Havers replied quickly. "You seem to have a lot on your plate... it's no trouble." He smiled softly at the Captain, making the older man blush.  
"Ahem, well, I must thank you for your pains."  
"It's nothing." Havers waved him off. "I hope to see you around, sir." Havers nodded at him, before walking, no, _sauntering_ out of the classroom, hands in his pockets.

The Captain watched him go, something glowing in his chest. Once the door had closed, he sank down in his seat, running his hands through his hair.  
"Oh no. Oh no no no no no."

For the rest of the day, the Captain couldn't take his mind off the history teacher who had walked into his life, much to his dismay.

His second years also told him that their exams were the best marked they had ever been, which didn't help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used to have pyjamas like Pat's 😂
> 
> Alison's an English Literature teacher in this fic, hence why Thomas has a lecture with her. Her character reminds me of an English teacher I once had, which is why she fits that role in my head.
> 
> Also be prepared for my history/classics nerdiness to emerge in the near future!


	4. I lied.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Captain goes to talk to Alison, and Havers gets caught in the rain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, I started writing this chapter with no idea where it was gonna go. That's usually how I write to an extent, but normally I at least have a basic idea. This one? Just went with the flow.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Tryna be more regular now cos I want that Christmas chapter but that involves a bit more storyline first.

The next few days passed without much of any note. Havers had brought him tea in the morning, which made the Captain flustered in a way he hadn't been for a very long time. The mug had 'carpe diem' written on it, which only added to the Captain's worry (gay panic, a voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Alison told him). The Captain had spent far too much time staring at a sticky note on his desk, on which Havers had written,

_I've got some serious lecture competition. Need to up my game W.H  
_

He sighed in despair, swinging his jacket around his shoulders as he made his way towards the English block. He met up with Alison every Wednesday after lessons to catch up with the latest news and to eat some of her newest bakes.

As he walked into her classroom, he noticed a certain young boy sitting at one of the desks.  
"Thorne? What are you doing?" The Captain asked him, raising an eyebrow.  
"Waiting for dear Ms Cooper," Thomas replied, sighing.  
"No. Just no. Get out." The Captain shook his head. He'd dealt with these types of literature students before, pining over every woman they see.  
"But my lovely..."  
"She's not yours, she's 31 and she's married. Stop being a stalker and GET OUT!" The Captain yelled the last part, making Thomas scamper out of the door. He let out a long breath, pulling out a chair and sitting down.

Alison appeared a couple of minutes later, bearing a Tupperware pot and two mugs of tea. She cocked her head as she noticed the Captain looking stressed.  
"You alright, Cap?" She asked, concerned.  
"Mm. Just had to get rid of Throne." The Captain explained, grimacing. Alison closed her eyes for a moment, before replying,  
"Thank you."

They sat for some time, discussing lessons, giving book recommendations, and eating ginger biscuits that Alison had baked the night before. Just as the Captain picked up his tea, a loud bang came from behind him. He jolted, spilling his drink all down his front. He looked up, about to reprimand the intruder for barging in uninvited when the words died on his tongue.

This was because Havers was standing in the doorway, soaking wet and red in the face. His hair was extremely disheveled, his tie had been discarded and top button of his shirt undone. The Captain had to bite his lip to stop any remark from coming out of his mouth. He blushed and looked away, to come face to face with a smirking Alison.

"I'm so sorry, I just... it was raining and I got locked out of the history block... and then Mr Fawcett was coming to I had to run... to the nearest classroom... which is here." Havers gesticulated wildly, breathing heavily.  
"No worries. Julian can be a right pain. Come in, come in." Alison smiled at him, pulling a chair out.

Alison raised her eyebrows at the Captain, who glared back at her. She relented and reached into her desk drawer to pull out a large hoodie and baggy jeans. Both her and the Captain always kept a spare change of clothes in their respective classrooms ever since they both got stuck on the sports pitch in a thunderstorm. It was their first week at the university and they both had to call in sick for the next 3 days.

She passed the clothes to Havers, who eyed them wearily.  
"They're pretty big," she shrugged, "I would get Cap to get his, but..." she gestured to the rain outside, which was steadily getting worse.  
"Fair point," Havers conceded, before standing up. He awkwardly looked around the room. "Um..."  
"Oh, just use the book cupboard. It's massive, you'll have room to change." She smiled at him warmly.  
"Thank you..."  
"Alison."

The Captain was sharply pulled to the corner of the room by Alison once Havers had closed the door.  
"So? Who is he?" She hissed.  
"Ancient history professor. He started on Monday."  
"Is he the one who marked your papers?"  
"...yes." Alison squealed.  
"Oh my god, you two are made for each other!" The Captain sighed, highly regretting messaging Alison about the marking incident. She always seemed to read into his messages and work out exactly what he was thinking.  
"Alison," he warned.  
"Okay, okay, _maybe_ I'm getting ahead of myself." Alison conceded. She was about to say something else when the cupboard door opened.

Havers was standing there looking sheepish. Alison's jeans were incredibly tight on him, and the dark green hoodie fitted him perfectly. The Captain cleared his throat and muttered,  
"Good Lord." Alison smirked at him.

It was going to be a long night.

The three teachers stayed in the classroom for an hour or so, waiting for the rain to die down. Alison and Havers got into a heated debate about the correct pronunciation of 'veni, vidi, vici', while the Captain found a common interest in cricket with the other man.

Eventually, the rain ceased, and although the Captain did want to get back to his apartment, a small part of him was disheartened. It had been a very long time since he had been able to speak properly with someone new.

"I must thank you again for your kind hospitality." Havers nodded at them.  
"Ah, it was nothing." Alison waved her hand dismissively, before walking to the cupboard to 'tidy up'.

The Captain cleared his throat awkwardly, looking at his feet.  
"Well, I must thank you for putting up with me." Havers smiled at the Captain. He looked up at this.  
"I was hardly putting up with you. Your company is most pleasurable." The Captain blushed, realising he had said too much.  
"I must admit, you seem a very interesting man, sir." Havers remarked. The Captain raised his eyebrows.  
"Is that so? I know I often come across as... cold."  
"Not cold, sir. Simply... formal. Respectable. Not an oversharer, which is definitely a good thing." Havers chuckled, but there seemed to be a slight pain to his smile. The Captain was intrigued, but had learned over the years (the hard way) not to push things.

His phone vibrated, and the Captain looked apologetically at Havers before pulling it out.

_Patrick 5.35pm_

_Everything okay? That was one hell of a rainstorm, I hope you didn't walk in it x  
_

The Captain quickly typed out a reply, before looking back at Havers.  
"Sorry, partner's wondering where I am." He shrugged. Havers' smile fell.  
"I didn't realise you had a partner."  
"Well, it's not exactly... have you ever heard the term queer platonic?" Havers nodded. "That's what it is. It's an open relationship." The Captain cringed at himself for adding that detail. Far too forward, he reprimanded himself.

"I see." Havers replied, the smile returning to his face. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, I suppose."  
"Yes, quite." Havers nodded one final time before turning and walking out of the door, the Captain swallowing thickly as he looked at the tight jeans the younger man was wearing.

Alison stepped out from inside the cupboard.  
"You got it bad," she laughed.  
"I thought you were tidying the cupboard?" The Captain arched an eyebrow. Alison shrugged.

"I lied."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. The veni vidi vici debate. It's the last word that people disagree on. In Latin, v is pronounced as a w. Phonetically I say it weechee, some say weekee and it is even pronounced wiki (like in Wikipedia) on occasion. It's always a debate when speaking to other Latin nerds, and the higher up people in Latin keep changing their mind too!
> 
> I did warn you it was going to get nerdy.
> 
> Carpe diem is Latin for 'seize the day', in case you were wondering.


	5. Message from lover boy?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alison has a hangover and the Captain looks after her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp the backstory had to arrive sooner or later! So here we go.
> 
> TW: Minor character death, and the effects of that on the Captain
> 
> It's a bit sad, this chapter, apologies.

"Alison! Alison!" The Captain yelled, rapping on the woman's door. They lived in the same block, Alison renting a flat on the top floor. The Captain and Pat shared a flat on the floor beneath them, and so often heard noise from their apartment. It was Monday morning, and there had been what distinctly sounded like a party going on until the early hours of the morning.  
"Alison, if you don't open this door I will let myself in, and I highly doubt you want me to see the state of your apartment." The Captain warned. He heard a groan from the other side of the door, before it opened slowly.

The Captain gasped. Alison had huge bags underneath her eyes, her hair was disheveled, and she was as pale as paper.  
"Don't you look a state." He remarked, which got a quiet 'thanks, Cap' from Alison. She opened the door a bit further, and the Captain raised his eyebrows at the state of the room. He had bunked in with Alison on numerous occasions before, and knew that she wasn't the neatest person in the world by any stretch of the imagination. This, however, was even beyond her normal standards.

"You're going to need to call in sick." The Captain tutted, guiding Alison to the sofa.  
"Ugh, I feel so ill... I actually think I'm gonna die." She moaned, lying down. The Captain shook his head.  
"You shouldn't be holding parties on a Sunday night then." He ran his hand through Alison's hair, removing it from where it was stuck against her face.

The Captain had always seen Alison as a younger sister to him. He had been friends with her older brother, Jamie, when they were in the army together. The Captain had very little family of his own, so Jamie had integrated him into his own family. He was 9 years older than Alison, but they had always got on. At first he had tutored her for history, and after she had graduated from university she had signed up to the RAF segment of his regiment. She had always called him Captain, as she thought he looked like the Captain from her GCSE history textbook.

The Captain and Jamie were... a thing, for a while. Neither of them were overly confident in their sexuality, so they never discussed it. Their relationship was stolen kisses in the dead of night, looks across the breakfast table, a hand on a shoulder, those kind of things. It had lasted a while. That was, until Jamie got shot.

The Captain had gone to see him in hospital, having been given 3 days leave by the authorities. He held his hand upon the hospital bed, stayed with him for hours.

_"I want you to promise me, Ted, that you'll be yourself. Always."  
"I'll try my best."  
"And whatever you do, don't let me stop you from finding love. Dying man's wish, yeah?"  
"I promise, Jamie." _

Jamie died just an hour later.

The Captain was... detached, from the world, from everything. He threw himself into his work, got promoted to Captain, and spent his days fighting and barking orders. He never rested, for he feared that if he did he wouldn't get up again.

It wasn't until he was hospitalised 2 years later, from a bullet wound to the arm, that he realised he was driving himself too hard. This revelation had been partly helped by Alison, who, by pure coincidence, was on the bed next to him. Her plane has crashed the week before, and she had managed to escape the wreckage alive, but severely burned and with a muscle torn in her leg.

_"You need to ease up, Cap."  
"No I do not."  
"You're gonna burn out. I'm worried about you, Cap."  
"I don't need people to look out for me."  
"Well, tough shit, I am anyway. You know the last thing my brother said to me? 'Look after that man. He'll blame himself.' And you know what I replied?"  
"...no."  
"'I was doing that anyway.'" _

They had both been discharged on the same day, and they walked out of the hospital with their arms firmly wrapped around each other.

The sound of footsteps made the Captain look up. Mike was waddling out of the bedroom, dressing gown wrapped tightly around him. He was groping blindly for the kettle, hitting his hand on 5 cupboard doors in the process.

The Captain stood up, knees cracking. His body was physically far older than his actual age, looking nearer 50 than the 40 that he was.  
"Michael, I'll do that. You sit down, and I'd recommend calling into work..." the Captain trailed off, glancing at his watch. It read 9.32.  
"Oh, blast." He muttered to himself. "Looks like I'm having the day off too." He fished his mobile phone out of his pocket.

"Nice of you to call, mate." Julian audibly smirked from the other end of the phone.  
"I'm not your mate." The Captain growled. "And I'm looking after Ms Cooper, English Literature, and her husband today, as they both have... food poisoning. Hopefully they should be better by tomorrow."  
"Food poisoning, is it? Yeah, I'll go with that, whatever. I'll get Mr Havers to cover your lessons, he has a pretty empty day. Just send him the work. Bye!" Julian hung up abruptly. The Captain scowled at the phone before opening his emails and quickly sending his lecture plans to Havers.

"You didn't have to do that, Cap." Alison slurred from her position on the sofa.  
"Nonsense. You looked after me many a time. Granted, not because of a hangover, but I hope you'll remember this next time you decide to throw an impromptu party on a working night." The Captain scolded lightly.

He set about making two cups of strong coffee and and a tea for himself. He called Pat to tell him that Mike was not going to be in work that day, and set the mugs down on the table.  
"Get that down you. Sober you right up." He exclaimed, before sitting down and taking a sip of his tea. He stood up, throwing an empty can of beer off the chair before resettling.

_Havers 9.58am  
I now understand why you complain about your first years so much. Lord help me. _

The Captain chuckled. Havers had taken to spending the lunch hour with the Captain, much to his delight. The latter had complained frequently about his first year class, to which Havers' response was normally,  
"They can't be THAT bad."

"Ooh, message from lover boy." Alison laughed from the sofa, now sitting up in order to drink her coffee. The Captain schooled his features into a neutral expression before looking up.  
"I'm sorry?"  
"Oh, don't take that tone with me. Anyone who smiles when they get a text is officially done for." Alison pointed at him, or at least tried to: she ending up pointing at the air above his left shoulder.  
"Bugger off, Alison."  
"Hey, you're supposed to be looking after me, remember?" She gasped, feigning offence.  
"I'm sure you'll manage." The Captain retorted, although without any heat behind it.  
Alison groaned suddenly, holding a hand to her forehead.  
"Aspirin?" The Captain asked knowingly, to which Alison nodded. He stood up and retrieved the packet from the medicine cupboard. He handed one to Mike as well, he had a feeling he needed it just as much as Alison.

"Lady B's gonna kill me." Alison sighed, downing the tablet.  
"Well, I wish you all the best facing her tomorrow. You've survived this far." The Captain chuckled. Alison simply groaned, flopping back onto the sofa.

"I'm never gonna host a party again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Julian totally didn't believe the Captain.
> 
> I'm sorry about the feels! I really didn't want to do that. I tried to lighten it up towards the end, I hope it worked!
> 
> Very different from my normal writing, I rarely write up backstories more than in note form. But I felt like it was important in this chapter, so there we go.


	6. I... I wasn't THAT obvious... was I?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Havers talks to Alison, and has something to ask the Captain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! It's been a while, haven't really been in the writing mood for a bit, and I've been preoccupied with the Advent Calendar.
> 
> But, I did it, I wrote another chapter! This was gonna go one way, and then I thought about it properly and changed it. I hope it's okay! If there's any inaccuracies with the Captain's behaviour, please let me know!
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

"Alright guys, you did well today. I want you to relax over Christmas, yeah? Obviously, reading your set texts is a good idea, but make sure you have some down time too, you deserve it." Alison smiled at her class. "Now scoot!"

The first years packed up slowly, chatting to each other about Christmas parties, people's crushes and other general gossip. Thomas, for once, was eager to get out the classroom. He hadn't been the same since the Captain had shouted at him. For the best, Alison thought, throwing her sheets into her folder haphazardly and picking up her cup of tea.

She was reading Jane Eyre for the umpteenth time when she heard a soft knock at the door. Assuming it was one of her students, she yelled,  
"Come in!" Without looking up, she said,  
"So, is it exam pressure, not understanding the text, or someone having a go at you for reasons unknown?"  
"Um, I'd actually like to ask something, if that's quite alright." A low voice replied. Alison frowned, putting her book down. Standing on the other side of the classroom was Havers.  
"Oh, of course! Sorry. Come, sit down." She gestured to the chair in front of her.

Havers sat down awkwardly, not taking his satchel off his shoulder. Alison rummaged around in her drawer for a packet of biscuits. After pulling out a ruler, a pencil case she didn't know she had, and about 3 stacks of confiscated notes, she found a bashed packet of custard creams. With a triumphant sound, she put them down on the table.  
"Sorry, they're a bit broken." She shrugged, opening the packet and eating one.

"Not a problem. I came to return these, mainly." Havers pulled Alison's spare clothes out of his bag and held them out to her. She thanked him and stuffed them in the nearest drawer.  
"You said you had a question. Go on." Alison gestured at him, covering her mouth which was full of biscuits. Havers raised an eyebrow before responding.  
"Yes, um, it's about the Captain. I, um... gosh, I don't know how to say this, um..."

"You fancy him." Alison stated. Havers blushed bright red. He stammered,  
"H...how? I... I wasn't THAT obvious... was I?" He tailed off at the end, eyes wide.  
"Well, not to him, he's as dense as anything when it comes to relationships." Havers breathed a sigh of relief at this. "But to me... yeah, not that unnoticeable."

Havers scratched the back of his neck.  
"Well... I was going to ask him to come with me to Mr Fawcett's Christmas party? But if he's going to take his partner, then..."

Alison pitied the man. He was clearly uncomfortable, not because he didn't approve of the Captain's relationship with Pat, but because he felt like he was intruding. She reached over the desk and lay an arm on his shoulder.

"He'd love that."

~☆~☆~☆~ 

The Captain was stressing. If anyone questioned him, he would deny it (I'm perfectly okay!), but since nobody was there, he wasn't. He was stressing.

It had been an extremely long time since he had liked anyone. There was Pat, of course, but the Captain was thinking about liking someone romantically. After Jamie, he didn't think he would be able to. When Pat turned up, he couldn't believe his luck.

And now he was falling for Havers. He didn't want to admit it to himself, for he knew that if he did he wouldn't be able to take it back, but it was undeniably there. After all, if Alison was teasing him on it, then he knew it must be serious.

But Havers definitely didn't like him back. There was no way that someone as perfect as him could like someone like himself.

A light knock at the door brought him out of his musings. He looked up at the clock. It was nearing 1700 hours, so it was highly unlikely to be a student.  
"Yes?" He asked loudly, looking up.

And there was the man himself, almost like he had stepped out of his mind and into the room.

"I'm sorry if I'm interrupting something, sir." Havers nodded at him.  
"Ah, no, not at all." The Captain said nonchalantly, hoping it would cover up the rising panic inside of him.  
"I was wondering, if perhaps, well, if you would like to, maybe, join me at Mr Fawcett's party?" Havers asked shyly, rubbing the back of his neck. There was a pink tinge on his cheeks, and if that wasn't adorable the Captain didn't know what was.

"Julian? You want to go to Julian's party?" He asked, confused. The ex politician was infamous for his parties, and not in a good way. Havers must have heard about them.  
"Yes. I've heard the rumours, but I'd like to find out for myself." Havers shrugged.  
"There's no way I'm going to a madhouse like that." The Captain stated.

He immediately regretted it. Something the Captain couldn't place flashed over Havers' face, swiftly replaced by an emotion he did recognise: anger.  
"Well, I'm sorry if it's too lowly for you. I thought you might like to enjoy yourself, but no, you'd rather sit here in your own misery." The younger man balled his hands into fists at his sides, but didn't move.

The Captain sighed. He didn't do parties, they were over-stimulating. But he was a closed man, and didn't want to tell Havers that. However, the other man's anger soon gave way to a look of softness, and the Captain knew his face had given something away.

Havers moved to sit opposite him.  
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lashed out. There's something else, isn't there?" He asked quietly. The Captain nodded gently.  
"I shan't pry, it's not my place. Alison said..."  
"You talked to Alison??" The Captain balked. She wasn't good at keeping her mouth shut at the best of times. What had she given away?  
"Yes. I asked her about this, actually." Havers smiled sheepishly. "She said you would like it if I asked you, but clearly she was mistaken."

Of course. Of bloody course. Alison knew that the Captain didn't like parties, but she knew that he would appreciate the offer. And normally, he would. But around Havers, all logical thought seems to flee. The Captain could almost see it, an embodiment of his rationality smirking at the window, waving its hand before jumping out.

"No, no it's okay." The Captain replied. "It's just... I don't do social gatherings." Part of his brain, the one that sounded an awfully lot like his father, was screaming at him, saying that he was oversharing, while the other part, the one that sounded like an odd mixture of Pat and Alison, was congratulating him for being open.

"That's fine." Havers smiled at him, the Captain unable to decipher the meaning behind the words.  
"Do you mean that, or are you just being polite?" He asked. "Because if you're just being polite you can save it."

"I'm being honest. Not everyone is good in social situations." He smiled, and gently lay a hand on the Captain's, who snatched it back immediately.  
"I'm sorry, I've overstepped." Havers apologised, rising from his chair. The Captain did nothing as he watched the man walk across the classroom to the door.

However, his heart betrayed his brain, as just as the other man reached for the door handle, he stood up and said,  
"I say, Havers?" The man turned around to look at him. The Captain started panicking, he hadn't thought this far! His brain searched for something to say, and landed on,  
"Thank you." Havers smiled, nodding at him before opening the door and exiting the room.

The Captain was well and truly stuffed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping to squeeze in one or two more chapters before the new year? I'm not sure if I'm going to do one based on Christmas day itself, but there will be a proper festive chapter, I promise!


	7. Open the bloody door would you?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Christmas Day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! It's been a while, I'm preoccupied by reading as much Sherlock fanfiction as humanely possible at the moment, but I managed to write this.
> 
> Enjoy!

"Cap? Open the bloody door would you?" Alison yelled while hammering her fist on the door. The Captain sighed fondly and shook his head. Alison wasn't one to be up at the crack of dawn, but Christmas day was the exception. He and Pat had stopped trying to fight her on the subject.  
"Blimey, yes, I'm coming!" He yelled back, making his way across the main room. He opened the door a crack before being pushed to the floor by an overexcited Alison.

"Happy Christmas!" She yelled, hugging him tight. The Captain looked up at Mike, mouthing 'help me', but Mike simply shrugged and made his way towards Pat, who was making tea.  
"Okay, okay, enough. I would like to be able to breathe." The Captain pushed Alison off himself and brushed himself off, standing up.

The Captain was wearing a formal dress shirt and proper tailored trousers, along with his smart black shoes. Alison was wearing a flowing tartan dress and a Santa hat, as well as her usual gold layered necklace. The Captain thought it an improvement on the year before, where she'd worn the tackiest Christmas jumper known to mankind, apart from maybe one of Pat's. He was still convinced the scout master had bought it for her.

"Guess what? I got you proper presents this year! Are you proud of me?" Alison laughed, waving a gift bag in front of him. The Captain raised an eyebrow.  
"I will decide whether they are proper presents after I've opened them, thanks." Alison slapped him lightly on the shoulder before shoving the bag unceremoniously under the tree in the corner of the room.  
"Hope there's nothing fragile in there," Pat laughed as he held two cups of tea out to them.

After they had all settled into their seats, Alison opting to stay on the floor in order to be closer to the tree, presents were handed out. Alison forced them to open Mike and hers first.  
(I remembered this year, so I should get first dibs)

The Captain pulled out a jumper, which was surprisingly quite tasteful. It was a dark wine colour, with a slight turtleneck. Pat had a mug which had 'stay rad' written on it.

The Captain got a trench art paperweight from Pat, which he almost cried at. His present to Alison were a pair of earrings in the design of a roundel. She hugged him again firmly - after asking - and put them in immediately. Her present from Pat was a copy of Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. Mike got a new drill from Pat - what he'd asked for, apparently - and a fancy hot chocolate mix from the Captain.

He had thought long and hard about Pat's present - despite knowing him for a long time, he was surprisingly difficult to buy for. When the younger man opened his present, however, the Captain knew he had got it right.

"You... you remembered?" Pat shot him a watery smile. The Captain nodded. In Pat's lap was a bottle of Watney's Beer and a box of cinnamon tea.  
"I was worried it was a bit... rubbish." The Captain scratched the back of his neck.  
"It's not naff at all!" Pat grinned.

When he had first met Pat, the Captain had been accompanying Alison to the pub, trying (and failing) to stop her from getting drunk. It was crowded, since a rugby match was on, and the Captain was worried about getting over stimulated. They'd shared a table with Pat, since nowhere else was available, and the younger man had taken care of Alison while the Captain took a moment outside.

As he'd made his way out of the pub, holding onto a drunk Alison, he had come up to them.  
"I, uh, here's my number. Just in case, you know, you wanted to meet up for a cup of cinnamon tea and a Watney's?" Pat had smiled shyly before making his way back into the pub.

Three years later, and they were all sitting in the Captain and Pat's living room, watching Nativity on the telly.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"Oh, Cap?" Alison called as he made his way to the kitchen, Pat and Mike sitting round the table discussing work while playing Kerplunk. Pat's board game collection was extensive.

"Yes?" He asked, making his way back with a tin of biscuits.  
"William gave me this. He said it was for you," Alison reached into her bag and handed the Captain a small present.  
"William?" The Captain asked nervously.  
"Havers. The ancient history guy?" Alison replied, confused.

The Captain's eyes widened. Havers? Had bought him a present? Him? Shaking slightly, he sat down in the armchair, carefully removing the wrapping paper. Inside was a small figurine holding a cricket bat. There was a note attached, which the Captain turned over.

_  
Captain (is that what people call you?)_

_I thought, well, I don't know what I thought. But I saw this and had to get it for you. I hope you like it._

_Happy Christmas._

_William (you do not have to call me Havers, you know this, right?)_

The Captain swallowed nervously. He hadn't got the other man anything! What would he think of him?

"Aw, that's cute." Alison smiled, peering over his shoulder. The Captain turned to face her, and his panic must have been written across his face, as Alison sobered up.  
"Cap. Don't. I know what you're thinking. Just... don't."  
"But... why would he buy me this?"  
"Because he likes you, numpty. He literally told me."

The Captain froze. So that's what Havers had meant when he said he had talked to Alison...

"Yo mate, you good?" Mike asked. The Captain shook his head slightly, bringing him out of his thoughts. He looked up from the floor to where Mike was peering at him, concerned.  
"Tip top, thank you Michael." Mike shrugged before making his way to where Alison was flicking through her book.

Some would say Christmas is about spending time with family. But the Captain looked at the people in the room, and thought, why spend Christmas with my family when I could spend it with the people I love instead?

He was brought out of his musings when Pat decided to blast Slade out of his portable speakers. The Captain rolled his eyes but chuckled as Pat and Alison started dancing (could it be called dancing?) around the living room. Mike looked up at him, a look of exasperation on his face which the Captain returned. His friends were nuts.

But he wouldn't change it for the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoping to get in a new year chapter? Maybe? I don't know where I'm going with this, I should really plan my stories out more.
> 
> A roundel is that circle thing you see on military planes.
> 
> I have the Norse Mythology book, I recommend a read if it's your kind of thing!
> 
> Cinnamon tea is the best.


	8. We're seriously calling it that?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Captain gets a message which makes him panic. Luckily Pat is there to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a filler chapter, this one, setting it up for a New Year chapter in the next couple of days.
> 
> I really hope I portrayed the Captain well here, any mistakes please please correct me!

The next week went past the Captain in a bit of a blur. He was forced to watch far too many Christmas films by Pat and Alison, ate far too much chocolate and had the occasional panic thinking about Havers.

Pat had realised something was up when the Captain, after reading a text, didn't move for ten minutes. The younger man slowly came up to him and said,  
"Earth to the Captain!"

He snapped out of his stupor immediately, turning to face Pat.  
"I'm sorry, I don't know what happened there, I..." he trailed off as Pat raised his eyebrows.  
"What was so interesting about that message that it made you turn into a statue?" He asked, clearly wanting an answer. The Captain looked down at the floor, assuming Pat was angry at him.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated, tapping his hand against his leg in a steady rhythm, biting his lip. He didn't want Pat to be mad at him.

"Hey, hey, Cap, look at me? I'm not angry," Pat murmured gently. The Captain wiped a stray tear from his cheek. Pat moved forwards, looking for permission, and wrapped his arms firmly around the Captain after receiving a sharp nod.

"It's okay, it's okay, I'm just curious, I'm not mad," Pat rubbed circles into the Captain's back, murmuring affirmations into the Captain's ear.

After they stood there for some time, in the quiet of their flat, the Captain pulled back and handed his phone to Pat, gesturing for him to look at it. Pat frowned but complied, skimming over the message on the screen. He pondered for a moment, before seeming to come to a conclusion.

"Is this the man Alison was teasing you over?" He asked gently. The Captain nodded, still staring at the floor, scuffing his shoe on the brown carpet. He wasn't good at discussing his feelings, and although he'd improved over the years, he had been dreading this conversation since he had first met the professor just over a month ago.

Pat handed the phone back to the Captain, who flicked his eyes over the message once again.

_Havers 12.58pm_

_So this a bit of a strange offer, I know, but my half-sister is holding an outdoor gathering for New Year, and I wondered if you would like to come? There's no obligation, of course, and I know the last offer didn't go down too well, but... the invitation is there if you want it. I have invited Alison too, so you won't be alone._

_William H_

"So, are you thinking of going?" Pat asked. The Captain shrugged, trying to play it off as nothing. Unfortunately (or perhaps not), Pat knew him better than that.  
"What's stopping you?" The Captain bit his lip, and looked up.  
"Fireworks. They're loud. And I'm not a social person. What if it all gets too much? What if I embarrass myself? What if..."  
"What if it goes well? What if you enjoy yourself?" Pat interrupted him. "Alison will be there, she can give you a way out of there if you need it."

The Captain scratched the back of his neck. He knew he was probably overthinking it, but he couldn't help it. Experiences from the past came back to haunt him. Christmas parties where he'd had a meltdown, being locked in his room after 'shaming the family' when the music was too loud and the lights too bright. Those days were far behind him now, thankfully, but they had never left him.

A firm hand on his arm made him look up.  
"You should go," Pat smiled at him.  
"But what if..."  
"We can sort out all the logistics. Give you a plan for the night. You can ask Havers if he can give you a general idea of how the night will go. You don't have to drink anything." Pat explained. "Of course, if you don't want to, you don't have to, but I don't think that's the case, is it?" He cocked his head to the side.

The Captain sighed and wrapped Pat in a hug.  
"You're amazing, you do know that, yes?" He muttered. Pat chucked in response, tightening his arms around the older man.

They pulled away from each other.  
"Alright, Operation New Year is go!" Pat said excitedly, making the Captain snort.  
"We're seriously calling it that?"  
"Why not?" Pat shrugged, making his way to their bedroom.

"First things first: outfit."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I said previously, I'm a bit preoccupied with the Sherlock fandom atm, but a new year chapter should arrive soon I hope!


	9. Chill, it's alcohol free.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Captain goes to the new year party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Well, it's the 2nd, not the 1st, but I got pretty close.
> 
> Longer chapter today, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> If the Captain is inaccurate in any way, I'm begging you, please let me know. I want to portray him as accurately as I can, and I'm really nervous that I haven't done him justice.

The Captain was fretting in front of the mirror, smoothing non existent wrinkles on his shirt, slicking his pristine hair back with more gel.

Pat had chosen a formal wine coloured shirt and thick black jeans for him to wear, along with a khaki jacket, similar to his uniform when he was in the army.

"You look great, mate." Pat piped up from behind him. The Captain met his eyes in the mirror, tension easing slightly from his shoulders.

"Are you sure you are okay with this?" The Captain asked shyly, dropping his gaze to the floor. Pat approached him slowly, giving him time to back away if need be, before hugging him from behind, resting his head on the older man's shoulder.  
"All I want is for you to be happy." Pat murmured, kissing the Captain's cheek. He turned around in the embrace, returning it for a moment before breaking away.

Pat smiled softly at him as the doorbell went.  
"You ready?" The Captain glanced back at his reflection once more, before nodding sharply.  
"Yes. Yes, I think I am."

~☆~☆~☆~

Half an hour later, Alison and the Captain pulled up in front of an old scout hut. There was a large field in front, as well as woodland areas and a clearing out the back. The Captain made his way quickly through the building, picking up a couple of biscuits on the way, and found a quiet corner outside. He leant against the wall, watching people chatting and laughing. It all seemed quite peaceful.

Alison sidled up to him, a cup of mulled wine in her hand. She shoved a pint into the Captain's hands.  
"Chill, it's alcohol free." The Captain snapped his mouth shut, not even getting his protest out before Alison waved him off.  
"So, you seen William yet?" Alison raised an eyebrow. The Captain shook his head minutely, scanning the crowd.

Turning back to Alison, he gestured at the glass in her hand.  
"Please, do not get hammered."  
"It's new year!" Alison whinged, flouncing off before the Captain could retort.

He stood there for some time, sipping the frankly appalling alcohol free beer, keeping half an eye out for Havers. He was, after all, the reason he had agreed to come in the first place.

A couple of strangers had approached him, trying to make small talk, but, off put by his cold and short replies, quickly found themselves disinterested and moving on within a couple of minutes.

The Captain looked at his watch - 2301. Less than an hour until the new year and he hadn't even caught sight of the history professor.

A young woman bounded up to him, clearly tipsy. She asked excitedly,  
"You're the Captain, right?"  
"Who's asking?" He replied cautiously, shifting away slightly from the stranger.  
"The host! Gracie Havers, nice to meet you." She stuck out her hand enthusiastically, and the Captain shook it with caution for a second before dropping it.  
"So, how's my big brother doing at his job? I bet he's a massive pain," Gracie giggled into her beer. The Captain shook his head slightly, deciding not to question it.  
"He's been perfectly adequate."  
"Ugh, he told me you were always so formal. Lighten up a bit, it's new year!" She elbowed him, not seeming to notice when he flinched.

"I was wondering where your half-brother was? I haven't seen him at all thus far." The Captain asked politely, trying to wrap up the conversation pretty quickly.  
"Oh, he'll be round here somewhere. Oy, Lucas! Seen Will?" She yelled the last part, making the Captain instinctively cover his ears with his hands. Alison caught his eye over the crowd, but he shook his head slightly and she nodded before turning back to her conversation.

Gracie grabbed his arm suddenly and dragged the Captain into the crowd, despite his protests. She stopped him sharply in front of Havers, smirking at her brother before making her way through the mass of people.

"Sir! I haven't seen you all night! Enjoying it?" Havers asked, raising his voice to be heard over the numerous conversations going on around them. The Captain flitted his gaze between the people, hearing all of it at once. People were brushing past him, and his hands started flapping of their own accord.

It was too loud, there were too many people, and he needed to get out of there. He felt like he was going to burst, everything was too bright, too overwhelming. He was breathing erratically, a sense of panic taking over.

Havers, sensing his distress, grabbed him firmly by the arm and helped him away from the throng of people and into a quiet area of the clearing, under a tree in the corner. He let go as soon as they were clear, opting instead to lean against the trunk.

"Are you alright, sir?" He asked gently. The Captain, who was now covering his eyes with his hands, looked up in alarm, embarrassed that he had been seen on the verge of a meltdown.  
"Yes, of course, why wouldn't I be?" He snapped back, immediately regretting it. A small voice in his head, the one that sounded like Alison, was telling him to stop crawling into his shell and open up. However, at that moment in time, the Captain wasn't sure he knew how.

"Is it the people? Is it too loud? Or are the floodlights too bright?" The Captain didn't reply. Havers approached him slowly, leaving an appropriate gap between them but coming close enough that he could read the other man's face.  
"I understand it may be hard, sir, but I cannot be of help if you do not tell me what the problem is in the first place."  
The Captain wrung his hands together, the twitching having stopped and his breathing having returned to normal.  
"Sometimes... sometimes it's all too much," he whispered, just loud enough for Havers to hear. He nodded slowly in response, seemingly debating something in his head.

Having reached a conclusion, Havers held his hand out to the Captain.  
"There's somewhere we can go, it's secluded, far away from the party, but you can still see the fireworks at midnight and it's bright enough on a clear night like tonight." The Captain looked down at his hand.  
"There's no obligation, of course. Just... if you fancied it." Havers blushed, scuffing his shoe on the damp grass. The Captain reached out, tentatively clasping the other man's hand in his. Havers' face lit up, and he gently tugged the Captain along, making his way through the sparse woodland.

They walked for a minute or two, until they reached a slow running stream. There were two tree stumps next to each other, in front of an old firepit. The trees gave way to a view of the sky, which was surprisingly clear for a winters day in England. The moon was shining brightly, slightly over half of it visible.

Havers sat down on one of the stumps, releasing the Captain's hand, which felt suddenly cold. He glanced at the other stump in consideration, before deciding to join the other man.

He glanced at his watch. 2351. Not long to go now.

"Your half sister is... interesting." The Captain remarked, trying to start conversation. Havers chuckled slightly.  
"Yeah. She's lovely when sober, but gets a bit pushy after a few. Lucky for me, I don't drink, so I don't have to worry about embarrassing myself." He looked up at this, smiling softly at the Captain before retuning his gaze to the sky.

"I apologise for my... moment, earlier. It was highly improper." The Captain bit his lip, scratching his cheek. He was ashamed that Havers had to see his... peculiarities. He was rather hoping he could hide it as long as he could.

"Don't." The other man replied sharply. The Captain looked up to find Havers staring straight back at him. "Don't even start. It was not improper, or wrong, or whatever else people have called it in the past. It is perfectly okay, and you have nothing to apologise for." Havers let out a long breath, watching it form clouds around him.  
"You... you don't mind?" The Captain asked incredulously.

Havers' face softened.  
"Of course I don't mind, sir. I should have been more considerate." He smiled gently, and the Captain felt butterflies in his stomach. He didn't know what he had done to gain a friend such as Havers.

There were distant shouts, but the Captain was not paying attention. He was simply here, in this moment, with the man of his dreams.

"Ten, nine, eight..."  
They shifted closer to each other, until their knees were touching. Havers' gaze roamed over the Captain's face, growing impossibly softer.

"Seven, six, five..."

In a moment of bravery, the Captain reached out to clasp Havers' hand. The other man gasped in shock, but before he could pull away Havers rotated his hand so their fingers were interlocking.

"Four, three, two..."

Havers brought his other hand up, hovering above the Captain's cheek. He tilted his head in question. The Captain nodded, inhaling sharply when the cold palm made contact with his cheek, thumb rubbing slowly over his cheekbone.

"One, happy new year!"

Havers softly pressed his lips to the Captain's for a moment, before pulling away. The Captain whined (he would later deny this, but it happened), following Havers as he pulled back in order to kiss him again.

It was soft, chaste, with no heat behind it, but it made the Captain's insides do a somersault. There were muffled cheers, and the distant sound of fireworks, but all the Captain could focus on was the incredible man sitting in front of him.

They pulled away eventually, Havers wrapping an arm around the other man's back and raising his gaze to the fireworks. They were beautiful, shades of red and blue, or at least the Captain was told. He couldn't tear his gaze away from the history professor.

"Happy new year, William."  
"Happy new year, Captain."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking an epilogue and then we're done? We're definitely nearing the end of this fic, anyway. I have an idea of how to end it, but we'll have to wait and see.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! I went out into the street and sang Auld Lang Syne on my own this new year, so I hope it was a little more interesting for you lot :)


	10. You no be poet laureate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first years discover something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, final chapter is done! It's very different to the rest of the fic, I hope it worked.
> 
> Thank you to all who have left kudos, commented and bookmarked! You are the ones that keep me going ❤
> 
> Enjoy this final chaotic chapter.

**Mary:** Have you's heards the rumours? 

**Kitty:** Ooh gossip! I love gossip! Spill! 

**Mary:** Well, you knows that new history prof? 

**Robin:** can i copy homework i forgot 

**Humphrey:** No way! I worked on my essay thank you very much 

**Kitty:** Boys shut up I want to hear the gossip! 

**Mary:** Yeah Robin yous can copy mine  
 **Mary:** What I be saying is I think Captain be dating the new guy 

**Kitty:** Oh how wonderful! They're so perfect together! 

**Thomas:** What's this I hear about romance? 

**Robin:** army man and classics man kissy kissy 

**Thomas:** Don't be so crude! 

**Humphrey:** Hate to burst everyone's bubble, but evidence? 

**Kitty:** Who needs evidence when you've got LOVE?! 

**Robin:** kitty shut up i with humphrey 

**Kitty:** So mean >:( 

**Mary:** Woulds a pic be decent evidence for yous? 

**Thomas:** Oh yes! The sweet passion of new love... 

**Humphrey:** Gonna stop you there mate, none of us want to hear your atrocious efforts at poetry. 

**Robin:** he right, you no be poet laureate 

**Thomas:** I will prove you all wrong one day 

**Mary:** Attachment 

**Kitty:** AAKSJAJDWHEJ THEY'RE KISSING AWWW THEY'RE SO CUTE 

**Humphrey:** Okay I concede if they're not together then they definitely should be 

**Thomas:** I should write prose to capture this beautiful moment 

**Robin:** no need for writing, mary have picture 

**Kitty:** He has a point 

**Mary:** And I not be planning to get rids of it 

**Robin:** send homework!!! kissy or no kissy, captain will be mad if i have nothing to show for monday 

**Humphrey:** Should have thought of that before you spent the weekend at a haunted house 

**Robin:** it be more fun tho. you can go boo at people 

**Mary:** Well my work here be done. And I will send you my notes Robin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this roller coaster of a story. When I first started writing it I had nothing past the first chapter planned, so I hope it turned out alright!
> 
> Thank you for staying with it until the end :)

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos or a comment, perhaps?


End file.
